Corridor in the Asylum

Description

Corridor in the Asylum turns an interior passage into a sharply receding view. Ochre arches repeat toward the center, with green doors and a reddish floor contributing distinct bands of color. Vincent van Gogh gives the floor’s curving lines an active part in the perspective, so the hallway feels both firmly constructed and rhythmically alive. The repeated openings carry the eye deep into the enclosed space.

Made in September 1889 with oils over black chalk on pink paper, the drawing records the hospital at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, housed in the former monastery of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole. Van Gogh sent the work to his brother Theo to convey his surroundings. Its concentrated view offers a particular experience of that interior, balancing vivid handling with the repeated forms and long, narrowing space of the building.

Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the Vincent van Gogh collection.